In Blue
by Diva3
Summary: Susan's bad day is looking up when things heat up between her and MacGyver. But her past and Mac's startling admission might turn it all into a nightmare.


In Blue

By Diva

Disclaimer: MacGyver and its characters belong to Paramount Pictures and Winkler/Rich Productions. All original characters and this story belongs to me and may not be reposted without permission.

Warnings: Violence, bad language, suggestive dialogue, and sexual situations. All sexual situations do fade to black for the faint at heart, eventually I'll write a more adult version.

* * *

It looked like rain. But then again, it always looked like rain this time of year in Seattle. MacGyver noted as he sat at the stoplight, then something caught his eye on the side of the road. An expensive green sports car was sitting off on the shoulder a few feet past the stoplight. The hood was up and a woman who looked oddly familiar was leaning over the engine.

He shook his head briefly amused and guided his Jeep over to the side of the road, pulling up behind the car just as the first droplets started to fall.

"Just great and I was having a bad enough day," the very familiar voice said before swearing loudly.

"Need a little help O'Neil?" Mac asked as he rounded the corner. He expected some kind of typically Susan wiseass comment, but she looked up at him pure relief in her expression.

"MacGyver! I have **never** in my life been more happy to see you."

"Really? I suppose that means that what you said at dinner last night wasn't true?"

"Mac, please, I'm having a really, really bad day."

"I can see that." Mac looked over his partner with a critical eye. Hair completely free of all the usual restraints and getting wetter and more wind-blown by the moment [though he kinda liked it, but didn't want to say], grease smear on her left cheek, a bandage wrapped around her wrist, and a large spot on her shirt. She followed his gaze downward and groaned.

"And to top it all off, I ruined a 25 dollar manicure."

Mac bit his lip to keep from laughing; Susan could be such a _girl_ sometimes.

"So what's the matter?"

"I don't know. It was overheating, but I can't seem to find anything wrong with it. The coolant was leaking and I plugged up the hole, but it still won't start."

"What did you plug it up with?"

"Pencil eraser. Come on Mac, I've been with you and your constantly broken down Jeeps enough to know that."

He shook his head at her and bent over the engine. Something in Susan's hand made him smile. The green Swiss Army knife he'd bought her for her birthday, just a few weeks before they started dating. The fact that she was using it made him happy.

He pulled out his own knife and poked around a bit, blowing the air out of his cheeks, he said, "Sorry, O'Neil. It's going to have to be towed. A mechanic's going to have to take a look at it. Get in the Jeep, you're getting soaked."

Susan groaned, opened the door and got her purse. "I was afraid you were going to say that."

Mac shut the hood and grabbed Susan's keys out of the ignition and followed her into the Jeep.

"My cell's dead." She said when he joined her.

"I forgot mine. We'll call from the office."

"What happened to your wrist?"

"Um, I had a run in with a banana tree."

"A banana tree?"

"Well, um, I was at the garden shop and I couldn't resist it. But I had a bunch of things to do this morning and I forgot that I had left it in the middle of the living room. Long story short, I tripped over it. Banged up my wrist and now there's an overturned banana tree in my living room that I have to clean up later. Then I spilled coffee apparently all over my shirt as well as the passenger seat. Then the car overheated. My cell was dead because I forgot to charge it. Thank god you came along."

"You are having a bad day."

"Where are you going?" Susan asked as she noticed he switched streets and was heading in the wrong direction.

"Back to your apartment. It's pretty obvious that you don't need a mountain of paperwork today. You're soaked, you need to change and you have grease all over you."

Susan sighed but didn't say anything. Mac said less when they got to the apartment and saw the mess she had left it in. Susan who was anything but messy was appalled.

"My god. I didn't realize what a morning I was having."

"Take a shower. I'll call the tow truck and see what I can do about that plant."

* * *

Place was still bad, but not as bad when Susan emerged from the shower. The shop was going to call when it found out what was wrong with Susan's car.

"Feel better?" Mac asked.

"A little. It must be a full moon."

"Come here," Mac beckoned from the couch. Susan joined him making a small contented noise as she settled back into his arms. They had progressed as far as snuggling in their take things very, very slow month long relationship. But right then, that's all Susan needed.

"Mmm. If we stay here all day, maybe nothing else bad will happen."

He kissed her forehead. "Can't think of anyplace I'd rather be."

"Oh please, I'm sure there's somewhere."

A few scenarios, mostly involving Susan naked, quickly ran through his mind. But he remembered something from a couple of weeks ago when they were curled up on the couch watching their compromise movie _Hatari_ (because it had John Wayne in it and Susan liked the Baby Elephant song).

"This feels really good."

"What does?"

"Being held by you. Don't tell anyone, or it'll ruin my rep."

Mac chuckled.

"Seriously though, I've been around the block a few too many times. Sex for me became just an act. Fun sure, but meaningless. Affection is something I've rarely had. So if I seem to be a little uncharacteristically huggy when we're alone, it's because it's so new to me and I'm finding it very enjoyable."

Besides he was giving into rainy day sleepiness and Susan had the best couch, big and soft. He liked the feel of her soft weight in his arms. So he said, "Nah. But you might want to move just a smidge, your hair is still wet."

She moved, "Sorry."

"Hey, it's okay, I kinda like it wet. But my shirt doesn't."

"You like my hair wet?"

"I like your hair. Wish you'd stop pulling it back so much, I like it when it curls around your face. And when it was long, wow, I remember the first time I saw you with your hair down, just about took my breath away."

"Thought you liked the new haircut."

"I do. I just like it better when you let it free like right now. Kinda wild and tousled . . ." His thoughts suddenly trailed off into a more tempting image and he turned slightly red.

Susan blinked, realized where he was going and quickly said, "Well, I'll try to wear it down more often when we go out."

She swore he heard him mutter, "Damn complications."

But she just let the conversation die and shifted into a slightly more comfortable position. They just floated there, enjoying the feel of one another and Susan was sure she had fallen asleep when the phone rang.

"Can you get that? If it's anyone other than the shop, tell them I'm dead." Susan muttered.

He shook his head at her and grabbed the phone just behind his head. "O'Neil's answering service. Hi Sam. No, her car broke down and I took her home. Don't uh-huh me young man."

Susan fought the laughter. They had kept the change in their relationship under wraps but Sam had pretty much figured it out and took every opportunity to make a comment.

"He did? Well thanks for the warning. See ya later. Bye."

"Let me guess, Uncle Pete?"

MacGyver sighed. "He's looking for us. It's not too late to run away with me."

"That would involve moving off the couch though wouldn't it?"

"Sorry, Susan, I think we're going to have to go back to work. Which means . . ."

"Means that we don't have a personal relationship. Yeah, I know." She had twisted so she was facing him. "You know, Mac, this month has been really great and I'm looking forward to seeing you again when we come back from wherever we're going."

"Count on it."

Their lips met but the kiss was quickly interrupted by the sound of the telephone.

Both of them groaned. Susan reached around to grab the phone. "Hi, Uncle Pete."

"How did you know it was me?" Her uncle asked from the other end.

"I have magical powers. What's up?"

"Is MacGyver there too?"

"Yeah, my car broke down, I got caught in the rain and he rode in on his white horse to rescue me."

"Hi Pete," Mac piped in as Susan put Pete on the speakerphone.

"Well, I guess that saves me another phone call. I know you have been enjoying your time off but I had a special request for your team's services."

"Goodie. So what is it this time?" Susan asked.

"You're not going to like this. We have reason to believe that the CEO of Global Con is in grave danger and their security team has called us in to help with security at a unveiling of their new water conservation equipment."

"Right, we did a project six months ago with them, remember Susan?"

"Yeah, I do. I liked their outfit, so what's the problem?"

"Because the head of their security force is Mike Roy."

Susan's face went white. "There's no way in **hell**."

"I'm sorry, Susan, but they asked for you and MacGyver."

"Oh, I just bet the bastard did. I'm not going."

"Someone want to fill me in?" MacGyver asked, looking very concerned at Susan and wishing that Pete wasn't listening in on the line.

"Susan?" Pete asked over the silence.

"I'll fill him in later. Pete, please don't make me do this."

"I'm sorry, Susan. All you can do is try to be professional. I really tried to recommend someone else. You know I wouldn't do this if I didn't have a choice."

Susan had drawn her knees up to her head and banged her forehead against her knee. "Fine. I probably won't have to talk to him much. I know you tried, Uncle Pete."

"You know I love you Susan."

"I know you do."

"When do we need to leave, Pete?" asked Mac, noting that Susan wasn't going to continue the conversation. He picked up the phone taking it off of speaker.

"Day after tomorrow. I'll fax the details to your office and messenger the plane tickets. And Mac?"

"Yeah, Pete?"

"Take care of her. Mike Roy hurt her in ways that no man should have been allowed to."

"I'll try. Thanks Pete."

They said their good-byes and Mac hung up the phone.

* * *

Susan was still sitting with her knees tucked up to her chin.

Mac sat next to her. "What did he do to you?"

"Broke my heart, used me, left me for dead."

"The reason why you got involved with Phoenix?"

Susan nodded.

"Why don't you start from the beginning?"

"Mike was a mercenary. Worked for the highest bidder. I should have realized that before I trusted him. But I was in a period of my life when I was very lonely, maybe too vulnerable. The organization I worked for contracted him for a project and assigned me to him. He was handsome, charming, we had a lot in common. I fell for him hard. So hard that I was blinded by him and things that I should have paid attention to."

"I know the feeling." Mac said softly, thinking of Deborah.

Susan sighed. "Long story short, someone paid him more money to double cross me. Even though by then we were living together, my lover turned on me as if I meant **nothing** to him. I was shot and he just walked away, leaving me in a pool of my own blood. I almost died. The only reason I didn't was because of Uncle Pete. The Phoenix Foundation found out about the double cross somehow through their connections and the message got to Pete. He sent someone to warn me, but the information was delayed and the agent came too late to stop it, but in time to save my life."

Susan looked up at what sounded like a strangled curse coming from MacGyver. His face had turned red; she was surprised by his sudden anger.

"Why is this jerk still allowed on the streets?" He asked, the anger clearly showing in his voice.

"That's the organization I worked for for you. I officially didn't exist and there was no crime. Besides, Mike didn't pull the trigger."

"But he might as well had, right?"

Susan nodded, blinking away sudden hot tears.

"I'm not so sure I want you to have to meet this guy again. Or if I want too. I might punch his lights out, if you don't first."

"You'd do that for me?" Susan asked, surprisingly touched.

"He took something from you that you don't give to just anyone and he threw it back at you. Even if I didn't care about you, that would make me mad. And since I do care, it makes me very mad."

She reached her hand out to touch his face. He laid his hand over hers and kissed her palm. "Now you know why I've kept you at arms length. You are the sweetest man I've ever met and I've not been fair to you."

"You're not the only one who's put up walls, O'Neil. Neither one of us wants to get hurt again."

Susan nodded slowly. Then she started unbuttoning the shirt she wore. Mac looked at her confused. She was wearing a tank top under the shirt; lower cut than anything he'd ever seen her in in full light. Then he saw the scar. Large and white, just above her bust line. Now he knew why she always kept herself covered.

"I wanted to show you the scar. It's a physical reminder of why I have such a huge wall around my heart."

Mac did something she didn't expect. He leaned over and kissed the scar gently. "I'm really good at getting into places that are hard to get into."

"Did you want to get there?" Susan asked softly. He could hear her heart beat quicken.

"I think I want to try. That is if you're willing to try to break down my walls too."

Their eyes met and they didn't need to say anything more. Until Susan broke the silence by whispering, "Make love to me."

"Susan, I thought we were going to . . ." She silenced him by putting a finger over his lips.

"We were going to wait until it was just us. And it is. This isn't about the past or what we're facing tomorrow. This is about here and now. And right now the only thing that matters is two people that are willing to fight for each other. I know we're not in love but we have something that's real. We care about and trust each other a lot. I want to spend the night with you. Complications be damned."

He touched her face, brushed a curl back, and looked into her eyes. She saw the desire in them, mirroring her own. "I want you so much." He said softly, almost embarrassed by his admission.

"I want you too. This isn't going to be a one night thing, not an escape, a step toward something else."

He didn't say anything; instead he reached out and undid the rest of the buttons on her shirt, pulling it down off of her shoulders. Then he drew her forward toward him and rained soft kisses along her jaw line. She gave a little sigh that was half pleasure and half relief, then his lips trailed down her neck to a place he'd discovered only a few days before. It drove her wild and she moaned with pleasure before dragging his head up to meet her lips and kissing him hungrily. They gave into heat and desire that they had been trying to fight for so long.

"Susan, wait," He muttered, pulling away from her.

"No," she whimpered.

"Ssh, it's okay. Protection?"

"Oh," she said with some relief. "I get that shot, makes my life easier. If you're worried about anything else, it's been over a year and I do get tests."

"Finally get to see your bedroom," he joked, pulling her to her feet, but she could tell he was suddenly nervous. So was she.

She kissed him again and the nerves flew away. She took his hand and led him into her bedroom.

* * *

"Mmmm, maybe today wasn't such a bad day after all," Susan whispered some time later, wrapped only in a sheet and MacGyver's arms.

"I'd say it was a pretty good day," He said, kissing her neck gently. "It's not too late to run away with me, you know."

"Okay, let's play what if, where would we go?"

"I know this island in the South Pacific, palm trees and balmy nights, hardly any people. Get a shack on the beach somewhere. What do you think?"

"I think if it doesn't have a stereo system, catering and a manicurist then this city girl isn't too keen on the idea."

Mac chuckled. "You know sometimes you can be such a girl."

Susan shot him a look, "A few minutes ago, I remember a certain someone who was really glad I was a girl."

"When you're right, you're right, O'Neil. And I'm definitely glad you're a girl."

"Soo," Susan stretched luxuriously, "What do you want to do now?"

Mac's stomach growled in answer to her question. They both laughed. "I don't suppose you have any food in this place do you?"

"I have food, I went shopping."

"Good, then I've got to call Sam. I was supposed to go to a ball game with him and I'll have to cancel."

"So what exactly are you going to tell him? Sorry son, I'm canceling the Mariners game to spend the day in bed with Susan?"

"The day, the night, tomorrow morning . . .."

"Oh really?" She asked, arching her eyebrow at him. "I didn't know you had the stamina old man."

"Stamina? Stamina?" He pounced on her, causing her to give a delighted scream. "I'll show you who has stamina."

Susan giggled as he pulled the sheet off of her, but all giggling abruptly stopped when he drew a nipple into his mouth. Instead she gasped and arched against him.

"Maybe you're not such a Boy Scout after all," she breathed as he moved to the other breast.

He pulled away from her breast to a disappointed whimper from her. "O'Neil?"

"Yes?"

"You drive me absolutely **insane**."

"What are you going to do about it?"

"Shut you up." His mouth covered hers and pretty soon, Susan forgot all about talking.

* * *

"Where did you learn to do that?" Susan asked.

"It's all in the wrist." Mac answered.

"But still, it's pretty heavy, I couldn't do that."

"Just takes practice that's all." Mac smiled, "Okay, I need a plate."

They were in her kitchen. Susan was perched on stool near her tiny breakfast bar, long legs bare, clad only in a large tee shirt, watching Mac make fried rice in her big cast iron wok.

Mac had changed, for the moment; back into the jeans and tee shirt he'd been wearing when he got to Susan's.

"I am so starved." She said with gratitude when he set the plate in front of her.

He planted a kiss on her forehead before taking a seat next to her. "Could it be that someone needs to increase her stamina?"

"I will never doubt your stamina again, my dear."

"Well, maybe you could from time to time, it was kinda fun proving it to you."

"Kinda fun? I'd call it rather incredible. By the way, um, thanks for well, um," Susan stared down at her plate, she absolutely **hated** the way he always made her feel like a tongued tied teenager struggling with her first crush. She wasn't completely sure what that was. "Geez, what I'm trying to say is thanks for taking your time with me. Not quite what I'm used to. Most men were 'Wham-Bam' or I was too drunk to really notice."

"Hey," he pressed a kiss on her cheek, and then turned her head to look at him. "Any man who wouldn't want to explore every inch of that beautiful body of yours is a fool. I'm many things, but a fool I'm not."

"No, definitely not a fool," She said wrapping her arms around him. "Do you really think I'm beautiful?"

"Very, but you knew that. But O'Neil, cut it out because I for one need to eat."

She chuckled back in her throat and then let him go so she could tackle her rice.

"So what are you going to tell Sam?" She asked later after they finished cleaning up.

"I'd like to tell him that I'm spending the day with you and not to expect me. Course he'll ask way too many questions and get all smug and I told you so."

"You know sometimes I wonder who's the father and who's the son." Susan laughed. "But you know, he's probably been right about you and me."

"Probably. Actually, I'm going to go home for a few minutes, grab some stuff, do you mind?"

"No, as long as you come back. I have to make some phone calls myself, rearrange the schedule for our latest trip."

"I'll be back before you miss me."

* * *

Mac woke up to singing. At first, he opened his eyes and looked around, with the brief confusion of not waking up in your own bed. Then he realized that the noise wasn't an alarm clock and Susan wasn't in bed with him.

Pulling on the sweatpants that had ended up beside the bed during round four, sometime around 2am, he went looking for Susan. Stopping in the doorway when he found both Susan and the source of the singing.

Susan was only wearing a tee shirt and she was singing as she watered her plant collection. He didn't recognize the song, but it was pretty, about love and loss.

She looked up and flushed slightly. "Good morning."

"It would have been a better morning had you been there when I woke up. I have this vision of you in the morning that I'd like to be able to see up close some time." He crossed the room and she moved easily into his arms.

"Hey, got to have some sort of incentive for you to make a return visit, you know."

"Like I need one. What was that you were singing? I liked it."

"It's one of my songs. I write nice lyrics, but I suck at composition. So I never play them in public, I just sorta make up a tune and sing them in the shower."

"I've written a little guitar music, but I never write lyrics. Maybe I could help you out with that one sometime?"

"You didn't tell me you wrote."

"Last week, after you begged, I played one for you, didn't you notice?"

"No, you didn't tell me you wrote it. I remember it was really pretty, but you know me, I only think in rock."

"Susan, Susan, Susan. What am I going to do with you?"

"I can think of a few things," she said suggestively.

"No way, I surrender. You've completely worn me out woman."

"Are you sure?" Susan wiggled closer. Mac was suddenly reminded that she didn't have a stitch on but that tee shirt.

But he said, "Not that the offer isn't tempting, very tempting, but you're going to kill me."

Susan chuckled. "Sorry, guess I've gotten carried away. I haven't had a night like that in quite some time. If ever."

"You know your compliments are going to go straight to my head."

"I wasn't talking about just _that._ I meant everything else too, talking, laughing, fighting over the remote." _Playing until we couldn't stand it then coupling like teenagers in heat._

"We did that before."

"We didn't do that _naked_ before."

"Good point. O'Neil?"

"Yeah?"

"We need to talk."

"Oh no, the worst four words in the English language," Susan pulled away from him.

"O'Neil, don't. Last night was incredible and I don't want to stop seeing you or sleeping with you either."

"But?"

"But we have to go back to work. And that means we've got to go back to just being partners again, nothing more. We agreed to that, but still . . .."

"No buts. We know what would happen if we had to dissolve the partnership. I'd be reassigned and we might never see each other again."

"I know."

"And regardless of what happened last night, I love working with you. I don't want it to end."

"We do make a great team."

"The best."

"But that isn't going to stop me from worrying about you, a lot."

"No more than you did before." Susan shrugged. "All we have to be is professional. We can do that. And you keep me from killing Mike Roy and we'll be all set."

"I may not be above reminding him of what he threw away though."

"Why, MacGyver, that's downright petty and vindictive. I like this side of you."

"You do have this way of bringing out the worst in me." At Susan's protesting glare, he grabbed her again and said, "And the best too. I have this feeling I do the same for you."

She sighed, "Yes, you do."

"We got to get to work. Do you want the shower first?"

"We could share. But I think we'd end up not getting very clean."

"Shower, O'Neil, now!"

"Yes, sir!" She snapped him a mock salute and headed for the shower.

* * *

An hour later, they were ready to go.

"My car's still in the shop, can you give me a ride?"

"No problem," He watched as Susan grabbed her keys. "Wait there's something we have to do."

"What's that?" She asked, looking confused.

"Make official the separation between business and personal."

"Oh, like we agreed?"

He nodded and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Goodbye, MacGyver, I'll see you when you get back."

"Count on it, Susan."

Then they kissed good-bye, long and tender.

"Good-bye." He whispered finally as they parted.

* * *

Late afternoon the next day, MacGyver and O'Neil were making their way to the security office of Global Con. Susan was wearing a short sleeve turtleneck and a long black skirt. Nothing she hadn't worn before, all very professional, all very up and up. Except for the fact that the skirt was slit all the way up and when she walked, Mac could see flashes of her magnificent legs, only wearing a pair of strappy sandals. He knew that the skirt was not for his benefit and that bothered him.

Jerk deserves to see what he threw away, but still. Okay, it bothers me that she loved him and she doesn't love me. I don't love her either, so I don't understand why it bugs me so much.

Then they got on the elevator. As soon as the doors closed, Susan gave him a quick but tantalizing view of everything under that skirt, which wasn't much other than the aforementioned sandals and a pair of black lace panties. She then shot him a saucy smile and went back to studying the floor buttons. _Oh, yes all very professional. I'm going to kill her._

As the door opened, Mac grabbed her arm and hissed, "I know what you're planning to do, but have mercy on me. If you sit on his desk and cross your legs, I'm going to lose every bit of professionalism I have."

"Aw, Mac, come on, would I do that?"

"Yes, you would. And I know he deserves it, but I don't."

"Okay, fine. I'll be a good girl."

She took a deep breath and rounded the corner and straight into the pathway of the man she had tried hardest to forget.

Both of them stared at each other. From MacGyver's viewpoint, he could see pure cold anger on his partner's face and bemusement on Roy's. His fist tightened involuntarily at his side, if this man found anything the least bit amusing about Susan, he was going to deck him.

"Susan O'Neil, been a long time." Roy finally said.

"Not been long enough," O'Neil managed to hiss out.

"Now, now is that anyway to greet an old friend?"

"You're no friend of mine."

"Look, sweetheart, you know how things are. I didn't mean for it to turn out the way it did, but business is business."

"Why, you cold hearted son of a bitch!" Susan lost it and leaped.

MacGyver pulled her off of Roy, but not before she had left a substantial red mark on the other man's face.

"O'Neil, hey," He said gently but firmly to his still struggling partner. "We have a job to do. He's not worth it."

Mike Roy rubbed his face and said to MacGyver. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me, you bastard." Susan snapped her head up to look at MacGyver, she'd never heard him say anything worse than damn. "We're here to perform a job. You don't speak to her or look at her unless it has something to do with the job. Otherwise, I'll let her go and I've heard that you wouldn't want to mess with her when she's angry. Got it?"

Roy looked from one to the other and slowly nodded. "Fine, let's go over the security details for the unveiling."

* * *

Susan bit her lip as she went over the final chart of the security layout. The junior security agent had been assigned to do her bidding, while MacGyver dealt with Roy. That didn't worry her; neither did the security, though she had a feeling in the back of her mind that something wasn't right.

But something else wasn't right and that was MacGyver. After the confrontation with Mike the day before, Mac had been strangely quiet. Very professional, courteous with the rest of the security staff and the CEO, behaving normally. But not with her, oh sure, he was polite, professional, and not a bit himself. Even before they became lovers, they'd joke around together, bantering usually leading to breakthroughs in their thinking. He'd gone to his room straight after the meeting, saying he was tired. So she'd spent a lonely night, ordering room service and staring at the door. What happened to the past when they'd eat pizza and argue over the pay per view? Did making love really change things so much between them?

"Ms. O'Neil?"

"Hmm, I'm sorry, did you need me, Jerry?" She turned to the junior agent.

"I asked if everything was sufficient, the CEO is ready to give his speech now."

"Yes, it's fine."

Time to get the party started. "Are Mr. Roy and MacGyver in their places?"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Then let's roll."

It had been agreed that she and Jerry would be on the podium behind the CEO, while Roy, MacGyver, and the other agents would take up positions around the courtyard. Susan slipped on a pair of sunglasses and joined the procession out to the podium.

She saw MacGyver in the crowd and he nodded to her. Her eyes scanned the crowd as the applause began for the announcement. She didn't see Roy. Puzzled, she frowned, raised her eyebrows and raised two crossed fingers at Mac. They had long worked out a shorthand code for each other and she knew he knew she had asked where Mike was. Mac made a slight inclination of his head, then looked himself and looked back up at Susan, puzzled himself. He quickly flashed the, "I'll go look" sign to her and took off. All of this took merely a moment. Susan wasn't concentrating on the speech any more, her eyes darting after Mac and across the crowd. The bad feeling she had that morning was coming back. Why did Roy ask for her? Seeing her again couldn't be an altogether good experience for him either. Unless, unless. Omigod.

She moved a step closer to the CEO, Jerry unquestionably following her lead. _He's clean, that's good._

As that thought crossed her mind, the sunlight glinted off of something on a balcony above the courtyard. At that second, she heard MacGyver yell, "O'Neil!!"

"Get down!" She shrieked as the shot rang out. Jerry tackled the CEO, pushing him out of the way, but taking a hit in the shoulder.

Susan heard a commotion over near the balcony and crawled over to Jerry. "Jerry?"

"What the hell happened?" He asked, stunned.

"I think your boss took the higher offer," she said grimly. "Is it bad?"

Jerry gripped his shoulder. "No, I think it went straight through. But it hurts."

Susan grabbed a scarf that had fallen off of one of the women and pressed it to Jerry's shoulder. She called to a young woman near by, "Will you hold this? Keep pressure on him."

She looked over the crowd. The security force was doing its best, but the crowd was still edgy. She didn't blame them.

One of the guards said, "The police are on their way, Ms. O'Neil."

"Where's MacGyver?" She asked.

"We think he took off after the gunman. There's no sign of Mike Roy." She exchanged glances with the guard; he was thinking the same thing.

"Is the CEO alright?"

"I'm fine, Susan." He said from the sidelines.

"Could you try to calm these people down? I'm going to see if I can help MacGyver."

* * *

"Nice try, lover boy." Mike Roy said, pulling his gun on MacGyver.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mac said, backing up against the wall and trying to keep Roy talking so he could come up with something.

"Please, it's easy to see that you're the current notch on O'Neil's bedpost. Hey, don't get me wrong, I don't blame you, she's a great lay. But you know, a slut like her ain't a good reason to get on my bad side."

Susan who was hiding behind a plant, just out of view, drew blood biting her lip to keep from saying anything.

But the tone from MacGyver shocked her. "You bastard. She **loved** you. Didn't that mean anything to you? Do you even care that she nearly died because of you?"

"O'Neil's a clingy slut who never got any love from her daddy so she says she loves whoever's doing her. Don't mean anything."

Susan saw a blur of fury come out of that corner and Mike Roy slammed against the wall, the gun sailing out of his hand and down on the floor near her. She grabbed it and ran toward the two men.

Mac was beating Mike Roy like a man possessed. Susan's eyes widened, she was almost scared.

"MacGyver, stop it!!!"

Mac stopped, looked at her, still holding Roy firmly by the throat.

"Don't kill him. He's not worth losing your soul for. **I'm **not worth losing your soul for."

"Yes, you **are.**" Mac said in a tone that rocked her to the core. But he dropped Roy to the ground.

Roy rubbed his throat and was about to say something, when Susan turned the gun on him. "I'm still not above killing, Mike, so just shut the fuck up."

"The police will be here any second. Jerry was shot, but he should be fine. CEO is safe."

"Good, I don't want to look at him a second longer."

MacGyver stalked off, leaving Susan to wait for the police.

* * *

"So it turns out, Uncle Pete, that Mike Roy requested us on purpose."

"For a distraction?"

"Yes, in a sense. He figured that I would be so upset over seeing him again that I wouldn't have my full head in the game and he could take out the CEO. As usual, money won out with him. But he didn't figure on MacGyver."

"The police said he was bruised and battered and you said something about falling. What really happened?"

"Oh, you know, a MacGyverism. Uncle Pete, I've really got to go." Susan looked up as she saw Mac come in with some mail, see her and attempt to leave. "Bye."

She jumped off the desk and barred his exit. "Oh, no you don't. You're going to sit down and talk to me."

"Fine."

"What the hell is up with you? I thought you wanted to keep seeing me. You're not acting like someone who even wants to be in the same room with me."

"I . . .. I'm sorry, Susan, it's not you. It's me and the way I behaved."

"The way you behaved?"

"Unprofessional, like a jealous, possessive, out of control animal."

"What are you talking about? Well, except for when you nearly beat that son of bitch to death, not that I blame you."

"Did you hear what he said about you?"

Susan winced. "Yes. And crude as it is, it's probably true."

"No, it's not. Don't let him take the Susan I made love to away and replace her with the Susan you were when you walked through that door a year ago."

"I'm the same person I've always been."

"Yes, you are. The real Susan, not the hard bitter woman I hired."

"Okay, you're probably right. What he said was terrible. And you defended my honor, that's what you do. You'd do that for any woman, I know you."

"Not what I did. That I'd do only for you."

"You're confusing me."

"I told you that you're worth losing my soul for. You are. Don't you get it, O'Neil? I'd die for you, I'd **kill **for you."

"Mac, you're scaring me."

"The partnership is over, O'Neil. I can't work with you." He got up and walked to the door.

"You can't mean that! What will become of me?"

"I'll work something out with Pete. Maybe they can get you some research job here if you want to stay in Seattle. Or wherever you want to go. I just can't work with you any more."

"Why?"

He didn't answer; he started to walk out, changed his mind and grabbed her. He kissed her, fiercely, possessively.

"Because I love you."

Then he walked out the door and got into his Jeep and threw it into gear, peeling out of the parking lot before Susan could even get her wits together.

Susan walked over to her desk, picked up a coffee mug and slammed it full force into the wall.

"Damn you, MacGyver, damn you!"

Then she slid down to the floor, pulled her knees to her chest and started to cry.

The End.


End file.
